Denise Scharley (born

Neuilly-en-Thelle Neuilly-en-Thelle () is a commune in the Oise department in northern France. Population See also * Communes of the Oise department The following is a list of the 680 Communes of France, communes of the Oise Departments of France, departme ...

, 15 February 1917 – died

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; ) is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, in the Yvelines, Yvelines Department of Île-de-France, Île-de-France region in Franc ...

, 26 July 2011) was a French

contralto A contralto () is a classical music, classical female singing human voice, voice whose vocal range is the lowest of their voice type, voice types. The contralto's vocal range is fairly rare, similar to the mezzo-soprano, and almost identical to ...

who made her debut in 1942, singing '' Pelléas et Mélisande'' at the

Opéra-Comique The Opéra-Comique () is a Paris opera company which was founded around 1714 by some of the popular Théâtre de la foire, theatres of the Parisian fairs. In 1762 the company was merged with – and for a time took the name of – its chief riva ...

Europe 1 Europe 1, (''Europe un'') formerly known as Europe nº 1, is a privately owned radio station created in 1955. It was owned and operated by Lagardère News, a subsidiary of the Lagardère Group, it was one of the leading radio broadcasting s ...

(28 July 2011)
"Décès de la cantatrice Denise Scharley"
Accessed 31 July 2011 Long associated with

French opera French opera is both the art of opera in France and opera in the French language. It is one of Europe's most important operatic traditions, containing works by composers of the stature of Rameau, Berlioz, Gounod, Bizet, Massenet, Debussy, Ra ...

, she starred as Madame de Croissy in the Paris première of Poulenc's ''

Dialogues of the Carmelites ' (, ''Dialogues of the Carmelites''), FP 159, is an opera in three acts, divided into twelve scenes with linking orchestral interludes, with music and libretto by Francis Poulenc, completed in 1956. Poulenc wrote the libretto for his second ...

''. She was also associated with the female lead roles of ''

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first performed by the O ...

'' and '' Samson and Delilah''.

Recording

* Francis Poulenc: ''Dialogues of the Carmelites'' (Denise Duval, Denise Scharley,

Régine Crespin Régine Crespin (23 February 1927 – 5 July 2007) was a French soprano who had a major international career in opera and on the concert stage between 1950 and 1989. She started her career singing roles in the dramatic soprano and spinto sopran ...

, Liliane Berton,

Rita Gorr Rita Gorr (18 February 1926 – 22 January 2012) was a Belgian operatic mezzo-soprano. She possessed a large, rich-toned voice and was an intense singing-actress, especially in dramatic roles such as Ortrud (''Lohengrin'') and Amneris (''Aida'') ...

, and others; National Theater of the Paris Opera orchestra and chorus;

Pierre Dervaux Pierre Dervaux (born 3 January 1917 in Juvisy-sur-Orge, France; died 20 February 1992 in Marseilles, France) was a French operatic conductor (music), conductor, composer, and pedagogue. At the Conservatoire de Paris, he studied counterpoint and ha ...

, conductor) EMI 62768

References

External links

* Pines, Roger, "Four Glories of Interwar French Vocalism", ''The Opera Quarterly'' - Volume 19, Number 3, Summer 2003, pp. 529–541 1917 births 2011 deaths People from Oise French contraltos French operatic mezzo-sopranos 20th-century French women opera singers {{France-opera-singer-stub